The Irish Lass
Look into those eyes… Look at that sweet and innocent face… How can you not?
This is Tegan, an adorable little Irish lass I had the pleasure of photographing in the spring of 2006. Tegan’s mother contacted me after seeing some portrait work I had posted on one of my older websites. She was drawn to my casual, candid style and wanted to do an informal photo session with Tegan, dressed in traditional Irish attire, inside their home.
The images I captured, though, became more than just a session commissioned by a proud mother. They became a loving reminder, meant for Tegan’s father, as a lasting memory of a beautiful moment in time. Tegan’s mother was suffering from brain cancer and wasn’t expected to live. The photographs were her gift to both her husband and, in time, to Tegan.
Knowing this, I arrived at Tegan’s house focused and determined to capture the best images I could. I love photographing children because anything and everything can happen. But the moment I met Tegan, I knew our session would be something special.
Tegan was friendly and relaxed. She watched and played with her doll while I set up remote strobes around the family room. She was a natural subject, never distracted by the man with the camera. She played only for her mother. Her world, in that moment, was all smiles and joy for the woman sitting beside me.
The session lasted about two hours. Tegan’s mother was thrilled with the color proofs I displayed on my laptop afterward. The images you see here are a few of the final ones I delivered to her. She loved them all. And I loved that I was able to truly capture Tegan, and in doing so, bring her mother some happiness.
A few weeks later, Tegan’s mother told me her husband was deeply touched by the images. He was thankful and appreciative. We corresponded for a few more months before we eventually lost touch. I can only assume her condition worsened and that she passed. I often wonder about Tegan and the girl she grew into. She would be 21 or 22 now, a young woman beginning to find her own way in the world.
All the images presented here were captured using a Canon DSLR and a Canon EF 24–105mm f/4L IS lens. The remote strobes were Canon Speedlites, their light bounced off a white ceiling. A custom white balance was established for the session and applied to all the images. Originally processed in Photoshop as monotones back in 2006, each photo has since been lightly tweaked in Lightroom for clarity and sharpness.
Enjoy!!
